The Present Disclosure relates, generally, to a micro SIM card socket, and more specifically to a micro SIM card socket with improved contact terminal shape, thus enabling microminiaturized and ultraslim configurations.
In general, a Subscriber Identification Module (SIM) is a chip on which the diverse personal information of the subscriber is stored, such as a telephone number. If this chip is connected to a Code Division Multiple Access (CDMA) terminal for international roaming, then regardless of the technical specification of the mobile phone, e.g., CDMA or GSM, it enables mobile telephony to be used freely in any region, with the subscriber's own telephone number. To obtain international roaming service using a SIM card, the SIM card is inserted directly into the socket (connector) onboard the terminal (mobile phone) for use.
A conventional micro SIM card socket is furnished with an insulative housing wherein the SIM card is mounted. A metal shell guides the insertion of the SIM card by coupling with the housing while maintaining a fixed interval therefrom. A plurality of contact terminals are supported on the housing and contact the connection terminals of the SIM card on one side and are fixed to a printed circuit board on the other side. A SIM card recognition terminal is supported on the housing in order to recognize the insertion of the SIM card. A locking part is installed on the side of the housing to selectively fix the insertion location of the SIM card.
However, in conventional micro SIM card sockets, with the miniaturization of apparatus including terminals, the SIM cards mounted within the apparatus is also being miniaturized, and consequently the sockets are also being miniaturized, so that the space in which the contact terminals can be safely installed within the housing is becoming very narrow. Additionally, there is a risk of collision between the front end of the card and the contact terminals during insertion. Also, due to the inadequate escape zone, there are limits to the extent to which an ultraslim configuration can be achieved.
Considering the problem of collision with the contact terminals at the time of micro SIM card insertion, referring to FIGS. 1-3, first, as shown in FIG. 1, there is a risk of collision between the front end of the micro SIM card 1 and the contact terminal 12, and as shown in FIG. 2, collision with the front end of the micro SIM card 1 must be prevented by slightly lengthening the front end of the contact terminal 12. However, as shown in FIG. 3, after contact with the micro SIM card 1, there is the problem of the edge of the contact terminal 12 colliding with the bottom of the printed circuit board.
Further, considering the problem of narrowing memory card socket space at memory card insertion, as shown in FIG. 4, the contact terminal 12 must have at least a minimum length in order for the contact terminal 12 to have elasticity, and if a slope is formed on the contact terminal 12 in the direction of card insertion, the collision problem can be resolved. However, because the minimum length, L, of the contact terminal 12 goes outside of the exterior of the housing 11, it is not feasible to mount the contact terminal 12 within the housing 11 due to the inadequate space within the housing 11, and since the exterior lines of the printed circuit board and the housing 11 do not match, it is also difficult to form a solder pattern, so that in practice it has not been possible to configure this structure for a SIM card.